Captured
by MissBarbieAnne
Summary: Takes place after In the Afterlight. Ruby, Liam, Vida, and Zu are out on a mission for Cate, and Ruby is captured by Bounty Hunters.
1. Part 1

I knew separating from Liam and the others was a bad idea. It seemed smart at first; Lee was being so over-protective.

"You just took the brace off, your leg still isn't strong enough," Liam had told me. The doctors had said my leg was fully healed, and that I just needed to strengthen the muscles. The best way to do that was to get back on it, but Lee was babying me.

Cate had called me and Liam to the rural area of Oregon, where she said there was still a Rehabilitation Camp running under the radar. She sent Vida and Zu too, but Chubs was too involved with his government work to tag along. I had only had the brace off for about a week, and Liam had tried to talk Cate out of letting me come (he insisted he didn't, but I could see right through him).

We all drove in the Government-Issued SUV Cate had send Vida and Zu down in.

"Don't do anything drastic, promise me," Liam and I were in the backseat, and he was suffocating me with the worrying.

"Lee, relax! I'm fine! I helped rescue Lucas with no issues, and I still had the brace on!" I snapped at him.

"I know! But the doctor said that your leg is more susceptible to another injury… possibly worse than before."

I glared at him. "I don't give a fuck what the doctor said. It's fine!"

Liam tried to continue arguing, but I shut him out. After ignoring him for a bit, he finally shut up and slumped down in the seat next to me.

We reached the area where Cate said to set up base. There was a small wood cabin there, and after taking a second glance, I spotted the crescent moon painted on the door. A safe spot.

"Finally fucking here!" Vida jumped from the driver's seat, and Zu unbuckled her seatbelt and followed suit.

Inside the cabin, there was four beds and rations of food, as well as a space heater. Surprisingly, the place was hooked up to electricity.

"This used to be part of a campsite, but it since closed down and the other cabins were burned by dumb kids," Vida explained as she dumped her bags on the ground. "This one had some problems when Cate found it, but we have since spruced it up."

I grabbed my bag from the car, but Liam came over and tried to take it from me. Instead of handing it to him, I slung it over my shoulder and walked straight ahead. I could see his hands drop to his sides before he slowly began to follow me inside. His head was hanging down. Deep down, I knew he was just trying to help because he loved me. But for fuck's sake, it felt like he did not think I could take care of myself.

The next day, we set out to find the unrecorded camp. Cate said the Government had a few camps that they left out of the records, and that they were more likely doing further testing there even though the Psi had been liberated.

Once again, through the whole trek, Liam was badgering me.

"Does your leg hurt? Do you need to take a break? Guys, maybe we should stop here so Ruby can rest her leg."

I finally got fed up.

"Just fucking stop! I'm not a little kid, I can take care of myself! My leg is fine, it doesn't hurt, and I don't need to rest! So just leave me the fuck alone, okay?"

I was fuming, but I could see the hurt in Liam's face, and I felt Vida's and Zu's stares like daggers in my back. I softened a bit and then out a long sigh.

"I'm sorry. I just… need a little space," I turned around, and Vida was looking at me with an eyebrow raised.

"You okay, boo?" She asked.

"I'm fine. I'm just going to go find someplace to… relieve myself."

Vida gave me the okay sign. "We'll wait here for you."

I nodded, and broke away into the trees and away from the group.

I did not really have to pee. But I was not going to get anywhere with Liam breathing over my shoulder, and Zu and Vida listening into every word. I had to break away and go off on my own. I could take care of myself, and meet back with them later if I found something.

I was gone for about fifteen minutes, and had put over a mile between us. The weather was cool and pretty typical for Spring. It was not hard to navigate through the woodlands either, and with everything so quiet, it was easy to think.

Soon, I realized it was becoming too quiet. The birds had stopped singing, and all the little creatures had run away. It was just me out here, standing among the deciduous trees.

I realized too late I had let my guard down. Within seconds, I had the barrel of a gun pressed to my temple, and someone else was holding my hands tight behind my back. I had no way to grab my own gun that was tucked into my pants, and it was found by a third person while patting me down. Three in total, it appeared.

"Try anything funny, Orange, and I'll pull the trigger," said a low, rough voice. I looked over and saw the man holding the gun. He had a bandana pulled up to his eyes, which were as gray as stone.

They knew I was Orange. Realization hit me hard; these were bounty hunters. Their profession of skip tracers was no longer legal, and instead they were hunting down kids like animals and turning them in for blood money.

The second person zip-tied my hands, while the third person blindfolded and gagged me. My ankles were zip-tied as well. I had nothing in my power to fight back. One wrong move, and I was dead. I was probably worth as much to them dead as I would be alive.

They carried me probably half a mile, slung over the first man's shoulder like a sack of potatoes. I knew I could probably infiltrate all three of their heads, but I had not used my powers in that way for so long. If I messed up, it was over.

"Ruby!"

I froze. The three men stopped walking and listened.

"Ruby!"

The voice was not nearby, but I immediately recognized it as Liam's. A few moments later, my name rung out again as Vida and Zu began to holler as well.

"Let's move," The first man demanded, and the other two began to walk faster with myself bobbing up and down as they moved.

Their calling began to get closer. I could not scream even if I wasn't afraid of getting shot, because they had some sort of fabric shoved clear down my throat.

Ten minutes later, metal doors were pulled open and I was tossed into the back of a vehicle. The ground was cold, hard metal. I could hardly move with my hand and feet tied, and I tried to get myself sitting up. I could hear someone coming closer, and then the blindfold was lifted. I squinted in the bright lighte, and could barely make out the thin, young face of one of the other two men. He was definitely younger than the first man I saw; he was probably just a couple years older than Cole had been.

I blinked a few times, and my vision began to clear. He reached down and pulled the gag out of my mouth. I coughed, spitting out the bitter taste and taking in a few gulps of air.

"Evans, hurry up!" I heard the first man's voice. The engine roared to life.

"Ruby?!" Liam's voice was even closer now… they were probably less than a quarter mile away from our location.

The man in front of me, Evans, looked back to where I heard the voice. Then he turned back to me, and I realized for the first time he was holding some sort of bottle in his hand. Before I could even scream, he poured the contents down my throat. It burned, and I coughed and sputtered and tried to spit it back up, but he grabbed my chin and forced my head back, clamping my mouth closed. Within moments, dark spots were dancing in my vision and my head became heavy. I felt like I had been hit by a truck; my legs and arms felt like they had turned to mush; everything went limp. The last thing I remember was the gag being pushed back in my mouth and the cloth being wrapped back around my eyes.


	2. Part 2

I don't know how long I was out. When I woke up, I felt horribly sick. I tried to get the gag out of my mouth, but I couldn't and I ended up throwing up with it still inside my mouth. I was choking, and I started to bang my legs on the metal floor to try and get their attention. It worked, and I felt them pull the van over.

"Go see what she wants," The first man said.

The back doors opened and Evans appeared. He reached in and snatched the gag out of my mouth. It was drenched in that nasty bile he had shoved down my throat. I leaned forward, spitting it out of my mouth and throwing even more of it up. The blindfold slid down my face and I could see once more. Evans grimaced and threw the gag-cloth on the side of the road.

"Jones, the gag isn't going to work. She's puking all over the place."

I heard the driver's side of the door open, and then slam shut. The older man with the cold eyes appeared, his arms crossed as he stared me down.

"It would almost be less trouble to just shoot her," He mused.

"But sir," Another voice popped up, and another man appeared. The only one I had not seen yet. He was tall, with red hair a bony build. "Sir, we were told there was a greater reward if she were alive. I don't know about you two, but I could use a few extra grand."

Jones, the first man, stroked his chin as he stared at me. "You're right, Red. Evans, just make sure she stays out for as long as possible this time."

Jones and Red walked away, leaving just me and Evans.

"Please," I stared up at him, I could feel my body trembling. Whatever he had given me, it was poisonous. "Please, anything else. Just don't give me that horrible stuff again."

Evans pulled another bottle of it out of his pocket. He rolled it back and forth in his palm. "An order is an order."

"Anything else," I pleaded. "Chloroform, tranquilizer… hit me with a fucking rock for all I care!"

"What's taking so long?!" Jones yelled.

Evans looked down at the bottle, and then back at me. Then, he looked toward the front of the van and his face hardened. "Sorry, kid. This is all we have."

He shoved that bottle down by throat, and before I could even try to cough it up, he held my mouth shut until my body automatically swallowed. It didn't take long for my body to begin to shut down again, and I was out within seconds.


	3. Part 3

The second time I woke up was worse than the first. My body was shaking, and my head felt so heavy I thought I was going to fall forward. I slowly opened my eyes, and realized he had never put the blindfold back on. After blinking a few times, my vision began to clear and I could see where I was held. It was definitely the back of a van, and I was slumped in one corner.

The mess from throwing up before was still on the floor. Of course they would not have cleaned it up… that would be too humane.

I tried to stop myself from puking again, but the bile rose up too fast to hold it back. Once again, the nasty stuff poured out of my mouth and onto the metal floor.

"For fuck's sake, she's puking again!" I heard Red's voice, which was much higher-pitched than the other two.

"This is fucking ridiculous," said Jones' voice as I heard the van begin to pull over.

Once again, the doors were flung open and Jones and Evans stood there. Jones exhaled loudly as he took in the scene: the little Orange girl huddle in the corner, vomit hanging off her chin, soaked into her shirt and all over the van floor.

"We can't deliver her like this. Evans, go get her cleaned up while Red cleans up the van." Jones ordered.

"What?!" Red hollered, obviously pissed off about having to clean up the mess in the back.

Jones walked away, leaving Evans with me.

"Alright, let's go," He took out a blade and cut the zip-ties around my ankles. "If you think I'm carrying you, you're sadly mistaken."

He set me down on my feet, and my knees immediately buckled. He caught me before I could face-plant into the asphalt.

"S-sorry," I was trembling, my body reeling from whatever he had forced me to take.

He just grunted. "Come on, there's a stream down here."

He pushed me ahead of him, but my steps were small and uncertain. It took twice as long to get down to the water than it should have.

"H-how long have you had me?" I asked as he splashed the freezing cold water onto my soiled shirt.

"About three days now. Only another day left before we finally get rid of you," He said, not looking at me, but staring intently at my shirt as he tried to rub the stain out.

"Where are you taking me?" I didn't know how much he would say, but he seemed the be the only one I could get information out of.

He looked up, just briefly, then looked back down to the water. "The big market is in Chicago. They are paying real good money for you over there. One of the last Oranges. The three of us will be rich enough to retire."

I stayed quiet for a moment before I got the courage to ask. "What will they do to me?"

"Experiments. Try to figure out how that brain of yours works. All kinds of electrical currents and monitors. It will be interesting to find out what makes you tick," He paused, washing off his hands in the water. "After they're done, they'll probably kill you. I mean, if you're not dead already."

I froze, staring at him with wide eyes. I felt like my heart had jumped into my throat. It would be just like what they did to Clancy, just worse. I would not even survive the trauma. They were going to just cut me and electrocute me until there was nothing left.

Evans finished washed off his hands, grabbed me under the arm, and yanked me up. I thought, just for a minute, that I could make a break for it. But my legs were already too weak to even hold me up without trembling. It was useless. There was no reason to even try to fight it anymore.

He pulled me back to the road and was about to throw me back in the van when something slammed into the side of it.

"What the fuck?" He left me on the back of the van, my feet dangling as he was preparing to tie them once more. A large boulder was laying on the side of the road, and the side of the van had a large dent.

Jones and Red had jumped out of the front seats.

"What's going on?" Jones demanded. "Is she back?"

"Yes, she is in the back."

A second later, another large rock came flying through the air and narrowly missed the three men standing there. They jumped back just in time, pressed up against the side of the vehicle.

I was still sitting where Evans had left me. My head was beginning to spin once more, and I realized then I must have been running a fever. My whole body felt like it was on fire. I thought I saw someone moving in front of me. I blinked a couple times; it had to just be a hallucination. But the person was still there, and soon her features became evident: Zu.

She put a finger to her lips as she moved forward. The three men were still arguing. She slid around the side of the van until she was at the open passenger side door. With one touch of her finger, everything inside the van was fried.

"Hey!" I heard Jones yell. "You little bitch, get back here!"

Zu sprinted by me, and the three men gave chase. But just as they ran past me, Liam and Vida appeared from the side of the road. With just a couple flicks of their fingers, the three men were flung backwards.

"You got them, Vida?" Liam asked, beginning the loosen his hold on them.

"Of course I do, now go get her." Vida smiled at the three men struggling in her telepathic grip.

Liam lowered his hands and came running over. He lifted me up, and I half-collapsed into his chest.

"Oh, God, Ruby. Darlin'. Are you okay?" His eyes were bloodshot, dark bags formed underneath them and deep lines etched into his forehead. He was exhausted. He probably hadn't slept the whole time I had been gone.

I wanted to tell him I was okay, to try and relieve him a little bit. But I couldn't even get a word out; instead, I felt tears start to well up and I just buried my face into his chest.

"Okay, guys. I need a little help here!" Vida was beginning to struggle, her arms trembling. Zu came up beside her.

"Let me help." She said, spreading her fingers apart as electricity sparked between them.

"I can't let you get that close," Vida shook her head. "Ruby, a little mind voodoo maybe?"

"Vida," Liam looked up at her. "I don't know if she can."

I looked over at the three men that had tortured me the past three days. "I can do it."

Liam looked down at me. "Are you sure?"

"Put me down."

Liam hesitated, but then set me down. I leaned against him for a moment to get my balance, but then stepped toward the three men.

Evans and Red were terrified. I could see it in their faces. But Jones' face was like stone, his eyes colder than ever.

"Do your worse." He growled.

I closed my eyes and let my powers lunge out of my mind. Being restrained so long had not weakened them at all. I could feel them grab onto each man's mind, and the meaningless memories began to flow. But I shifted past them, and grabbed onto only the important ones. The plan to capture me, the three of them meeting with a strange man, watching me in the forest, capturing me, the bottles of that vile, nasty poison. I ripped each memory out of their heads until there was nothing left of their lives as bounty hunters.

Vida released her grip and all three men stood there dumbfounded for a minute. Then, they turned around, ignoring us, and began to talk away.

"Good riddance!" Vida yelled, spitting in their direction.

My head began to spin again, and my legs were shaking. Just as my knees were about to buckle, Liam bent down to swooped me up in his arms again.

"We need to get her to a hospital. She's burning up!"

Vida and Zu turned their attention to us, and then started running back toward where they had stowed the SUV. Liam following, holding me close against his chest.

Everyone piled into the SUV, and Liam laid me in the backseat and sat down beside me. He pulled me up against him, almost as if he had to be touching me to make sure I was actually there.

"I'm sorry," I whispered, leaning against his shoulder.

"Oh, darlin'. For what?"

"For yelling at you. For wandering off. For everything," The tears began to well up again, but his gentle hand wiped them away.

"Right now, all I care about is that you are alive and that you are safe now," He gave me a tender smile and kissed my forehead. I smiled, but began coughing as I felt bile begin to slide up my throat. My stomach was churning.

"Don't you dare puke in this car!" Vida shouted, throwing an old food container into the backseat. Liam put it under my chin just in time to save the upholstery from my stomach contents.


	4. Continued in Strength

Please see "Strength" for the next part of this story!


End file.
